Tenants organizing to fight landlord lobby and resist attacks on DC tenant rights; Tenants demanding immediate implementation of rent stabilization in Montgomery County; county residents urged to submit public testimony; Deadline to submit ballot statemen
Tenants organizing to fight landlord lobby and resist attacks on DC tenant rights — Wednesday, February 28
Mayor Muriel Bowser and real estate industry lobbyists are plotting to gut DC’s unique tenants’ rights laws. Proposals floating in the DC government would propose “affordable housing” and any properties built in the last 25 years be exempted from the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA). TOPA gives tenants a chance to take over their buildings and run them cooperatively or to collectively bargain binding agreements with a new landlord. Over the past 20 years, DC tenants have used their rights to preserve more than 16,000 apartments by keeping their buildings out of the hands of speculators who want to push out low-income residents and raise rents.
Mayor Bowser’s Department of Housing and Community Development is preparing to ram these proposals through with the coming year’s budget. In a hearing last week, DC Council Housing Committee chair Robert White refused to rule out tampering with TOPA. Tenants must stand together to resist these attacks.
Stomp Out Slumlords is hosting an emergency organizing meeting in partnership with DC Jobs with Justice on Wednesday, February 28 at the Festival Center at 6:30pm to discuss the latest intelligence on the landlord lobby’s efforts and begin planning to fight back. Tenants and allies are encouraged to sign up to attend here. If you rent in DC, now is the time to get organized in defense of your rights. Contact SOS at [email protected] for support educating and organizing your neighbors.
Tenants demanding immediate implementation of rent stabilization in Montgomery County; county residents urged to submit public testimony
Last year, thanks to the hard work of renters and allies in Montgomery County including Metro DC DSA, the Montgomery County Council passed a historic law to limit rent increases and fees. Just a few years ago, this victory seemed impossible, but consistent power building in the County made this huge win inevitable. However, the fight to cap the rent in Montgomery County is not over until the Council passes the regulations needed to put the law into action. In the meantime, rents continue to increase beyond the 6% cap allowable by Bill 15-23.
The rent stabilization regulations are open for comment through March 1, and then the County Council must approve the regulations. Montgomery County residents are making their voices heard and reminding the Council of their duty to pass the regulations and put the law into effect ASAP to protect renters. Residents can use this guide to write to the Montgomery County Council about the regulations and share how timely implementation of these laws would help.
Montgomery County’s rent stabilization does not cover tenants in the City of Rockville, however, leaving Rockville residents vulnerable to unaffordable rent hikes. But this also means that the Rockville City Council and the Mayor have the opportunity to pass an even stronger bill. Rockville residents can use this form to tell the City Council and Mayor to pass this badly needed reform.
Deadline to submit ballot statements for or against Metro DC DSA Initiative 83 endorsement closing soon
All members in good standing have the opportunity to submit a ballot statement in favor of or against Resolution EER2: Endorse Initiative 83. Ballot statements can be submitted on Red Desk by selecting “Agenda Item/Submit Member Statement. The deadline to submit statements that will appear on the ballot is Monday, February 26 at 11:59pm Eastern Time, and the OpaVote ballot to vote on the resolution will be sent on Wednesday, February 28.
Please contact the Metro DC DSA Steering Committee at [email protected] or in the #steering Slack channel with questions or requests for further information.
BRIEFS
MDC DSA Internationalism working group to restart — interest meeting on Sunday, February 25
Comrades interested in being part of restarting the chapter’s Internationalism working group are invited to join a virtual meeting on Sunday, February 25, where the vision for the working group will be discussed and interested volunteers can sign up to be part of a coordinating crew. RSVP here.
Pack Alexandria City Hall to demand a ceasefire in Gaza — Saturday, February 24
Virginia residents will be turning out to the Alexandria City Hall this Saturday, February 24 to demand lawmakers call for a ceasefire in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. The City Council open session begins at 9:30am on Saturday, February 24 — members of the public are able to speak for 3 minutes, and signs, which will be provided, must be 8.5” by 11”. You can also submit written testimony to demand our public officials address the plight of the Palestinian people and our unwilling complicity in funding the IDF.
ATU Local 689 on strike at the Fairfax Connector
On Thursday, February 22, ATU Local 689 announced that Fairfax Connector workers will strike against Connector contractor Transdev over unfair labor practices. The union represents ~638 bus operators and mechanics on the Connector, who have been working under an expired contract since December 2023. Learn more here. Virginia residents can support the workers by amplifying the strike on social media and visiting picket lines at Herndon Garage (268 Spring St., Herndon, VA), Huntington Garage (8101 Cinder Bed Rd., Lorton, VA) and West Ox Garage (4970 Alliance Drive, Fairfax, VA).
Socialists and workers convene for happy hour — Sunday, February 25
This Sunday at 2:30pm, Metro DC DSA’s labor working group will be hosting a Labor Notes happy hour at Sonny’s in Columbia Heights. At this happy hour, workers and socialists will be discussing and sharing organizing tactics in the DMV area, connect with fellow workers, and also fundraise scholarships for local workers planning to attend this year’s upcoming Labor Notes conference. Members of Metro DC DSA, members of regional labor unions, or those interested in organizing their workplace are invited to attend.
Labor Notes has been the voice of union activists who want to put the movement back in the labor movement since 1979. The Labor Notes Conference is the largest gathering of labor activists in the country, and this year over four thousand attendees are expected. Learn more about Labor Notes here.
NoVA Anti-Eviction canvass on Sunday, February 25; Coordination Meeting on Monday, February 26
The NoVA Tenant Organizing working group will be embarking on an anti-eviction canvass in Alexandria this Sunday, February 25 at 1pm. Canvassers will inform tenants facing eviction of their rights in court and gauge interest in new building organizing. Canvassers will meet at the Shops at Mark Center (1468 N Beauregard St, Alexandria, VA 223110) in the parking lot in front of Starbucks. Before heading out to canvass, there will be a short training to explain why these canvasses are necessary, how to talk to tenants about their upcoming eviction suits, and how to fill in walk-sheets.
And on Monday at 7pm at Funger Hall (2201 G St NW), Stomp Out Slumlords will be hosting an anti-eviction canvass coordination meeting. The meeting is being held to plan the next few canvasses, solicit volunteers to help with on-site coordination and administrative support and discuss the future direction of anti-eviction canvassing and ways to fight for tenants’ rights. RSVP here.
Metro DC DSA outreach expedition kicking off on Saturday, February 24 at 1pm
This Saturday, Metro DC DSA’s Abolition and Political Education working groups will be engaging in a flyering expedition to promote upcoming events being planned by the chapter. Members will be meeting at the Columbia Heights Civic Plaza on Saturday, February 24 for a quick tutorial on the poster process before dispersing to locations across the city in groups of two to three to promote events. Members new or old interested in participating can reach out to Abolition working group Chair Keeli M with any questions and to join an eventual Signal chat closer to the event. RSVP here.
Medicare for All organizer training — Saturday, February 24
The NoVA branch Medicare For All working group will be holding a virtual teach-in and organizer training on Saturday, February 24 at 5pm to help new organizers and activists learn about the dysfunctional US healthcare system, how Medicare For All would work to fix our broken system and how to join their resolution campaigns and petition drives. RSVP here.
NoVA Migrant Justice to hold virtual migrant justice working group meeting to thwart the ICE Deportation Machine
On Tuesday, March 5, from 6 to 7pm the NoVA Migrant Justice Working Group will host an open meeting and political education event, "Migrant Justice Starts at Home: How Local Action Can Help Thwart ICE's Deportation Machine." The event will take place on Zoom and explain the role city and county governments, sheriff's departments, and police play within ICE's deportation pipeline. The event will hear about how migrant-led coalitions have successfully built power in recent years to challenge ICE at the local level, and how these tactics can be deployed and supported in northern Virginia. Register to attend here.
Sign up for the History of Tenant Rights in DC walking tour — Sunday, March 10
Sign up now for the History of Tenant Rights: DC walking tour, starting at 1pm on Sunday, March 10 at Columbia Heights Civic Plaza in DC. It will be a neighborhood walking tour exploring the past, present and future of tenant rights in the area, visiting three sites around Columbia Heights connected to the history of how tenants came together to demand rent control and better housing conditions, buy the buildings from their landlord and form cooperatives, organize tenant unions and exercise their power to get the DC Council to pass the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase (TOPA) Act. The Walking Tour will be led by Professor Amanda Huron, organizers with the Stomp Out Slumlords campaign and current tenants in Columbia Heights. Sign up in advance to join the tour — readers can also indicate if they’d like to volunteer during the tour or help wheatpaste in the weekends leading up to the event.
New to the DSA and want to connect with others? New member community cohorts to begin in March
Anyone new to Metro DC DSA is invited to apply to join the Spring 2024 New Member Community Cohort. The cohort will take part in a mostly in-person weekly training from mid-March through mid-April covering “Why We Organize,” “What is Socialism?,” chapter operations and resources and a dedicated social outing. Cohort applications are due before the end of the month.
DSA national has its own site of course. DSA Feed is an RSS feed that aggregates multiple DSA publications — including our own Washington Socialist — in one convenient place. More from the National Tech Committee here.
MDC DSA Publications Schedule: Washington Socialist is now publishing on a quarterly schedule. Updates to the current (“Winter”) number will be published on a rolling basis over the next month. Get on record about your socialism! Contributors to the Washington Socialist can email submissions or questions at [email protected].
Want more INFO ACCESS? Submit your Update suggestions to the tip line. Or even better, participate in MDC DSA’s publications effort. We write, we edit, we design, we do the tech — there are so many ways your hand could lighten the load in 2024 and beyond. Check us out on #publications and let us know what you would like to write, or write about.
COMMUNITY BULLETIN
Mass Poor People's Low Wage Workers' Moral March | Poor People's Campaign
Join Metro DC DSA and the Poor People's Campaign on March 2 for the Mass Poor People's Low Wage Workers' Moral March to Maryland and Virginia State House Assemblies, where we will demand an end to systemic racism and the abolition of poverty — which causes 800 deaths a day in the US and is the fourth leading cause of death — as well as a living wage and workers’ rights, full unsuppressed voting rights, universal healthcare and fully funded education for all, affordable housing and environmental justice.
If you’re interested in marshaling for the event, please contact Tim S at [email protected] or @Tim Smith (he/him) on Slack.
ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES
Restoring the Past Won’t Liberate Palestine
NYT columnist Lydia Polgreen examines the value of past examples versus emancipatory new paths in the frightening context of the current genocidal conflict in Gaza. “Liberation requires invention, not restoration. If history tells us anything it is this: Time moves in one direction, forward,” she argues in an unusually in-depth piece.
Last November, voters in Tacoma, Washington, approved Initiative 1, a ballot measure that established significant protections for the city’s renters. Also known as the “Tenant Bill of Rights,” among other things the measure requires landlords to provide tenants with rental relocation assistance in the event of large rent hikes, and prohibits evictions during the cold winter months and evictions of students, teachers, and their families during the school year. The campaign for the Tenant Bill of Rights was spearheaded by the Tacoma chapter of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), in coalition with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 367 and other groups. Jacobin reports on two lead organizers (both DSA) instrumental in the effort, including the coalition behind it and how they overcame a well-funded opposition campaign by the landlord lobby.” Thanks to Megan Essaheb of People’s Action for this heads-up.
The myth persists, but immigrants are not hurting US-born workers
The immigrant share of the labor force reached a record high of 18.6% in 2023, according to [EPI’s] analysis of Current Population Survey (CPS) data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Anti-immigration advocates have been out in full force, using this as a talking point for deeply misguided commentary and analysis that roughly translates to ‘immigrants are taking all our jobs.’ The reality is that the economy does not have a fixed number of jobs, and what we see today is a growing economy that is adding jobs for both immigrants and U.S.-born workers. Economic Policy Institute – h/t Popular Resistance.
Trump allies prepare to infuse ‘Christian nationalism’ in second administration
An influential think tank close to Donald Trump is developing plans to infuse Christian nationalist ideas in his administration should the former president return to power, according to documents obtained by POLITICO. Spearheading the effort is Russell Vought, who served as Trump’s director of the Office of Management and Budget during his first term and has remained close to him. Vought, who is frequently cited as a potential chief of staff in a second Trump White House, is president of The Center for Renewing America think tank, a leading group in a conservative consortium preparing for a second Trump term. POLITICO
The flame of thought, the magnificence of art, the wonder of discovery, and the audacity of invention all belong to revolutionary periods when humanity, tired of its chains, shatters them and stops inebriated to breathe the breeze of a vast and free horizon.
- Virgilia D'Andrea
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